CLINICAL LADDER PROGRAM EVALUATION

As early as the 1960s, nursing leaders have recognized the need for hospitals to have a mechanism to retain and recognize talented nurses at the bedside for patient safety, to improve patient outcomes, and for nurse retention and satisfaction. One method of accomplishing these outcomes is a clinical ladder program (CLP). The Medical Center first introduced the CLP to the nursing team in 2014. Of the 900 eligible nurses, only 174 submitted applications by the December 2014 deadline. In addition, reviews of the CLP application documents at the Medical Center revealed that of the 174 applicants, 33 applicants did not qualify for any level on the CLP. This low rate of successful applications warranted a formal program evaluation to determine barriers nurses perceived to making application to the CLP. The purpose of this project was to conduct a formal program evaluation of the Medical Center’s CLP by me, the Medical Center’s Chief Nursing Officer. The program evaluation was administered to all nurses deemed eligible to apply to the CLP. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to gather data and the findings identified issues such as lack of management support, lack of time, money, recognition, and an inconsistent review process. The identified issues in presentation and implementation enabled the design committee, charged with developing and administering the CLP, to make changes in the program based on nurses’ feedback. Changes were made to the CLP prior to the 2015 fall enrollment period. In comparing iv the fall application period of 2015 to that of the fall of 2014, there was an increase from 15% successful applications in 2014 to 22% successful applications in 2015